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Fate of the Jedi - Omen [HC] Fate of the Jedi - Outcast [HC] Coruscant Nights III: Patterns of Force [PB] Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor [HC] The Clone Wars: Wild Space [TPB] Rebel Force #2: Hostage [YR] Rebel Force #1: Target [YR] Millennium Falcon [HC] Decide Your Destiny #1: The Way of the Jedi [YR] Republic Commando: Order 66 [HC] The Life and Legend of Obi-Wan Kenobi [HC] LucasArts Announcement Coming Tomorrow SW Aficionado Interviews Howard Kazanjian How About A Couple Invasion #1 Reviews? Karen Miller's TCW Gambit: Stealth Update TCW: "Lair Of Greivous" Decoded Now Online TOR: The Mandalorians Return! TOR: Threat Of Peace #10 Now Online STARLOG Star Wars Toon Of The Day 7/3 Troy Denning's Dark Nest trilogy (spoilers allowed) The Official Alpha, the ARC Troopers and the Commandos Thread The EU and Episode III: Revenge of the Sith- Spoilers Allowed Secrets of the Jedi Most powerful person in the galaxy The Ages of EU Characters There are no polls currently operating in this sector. Please check back soon. View Poll Archives Adrick's Top 10 Expanded Universe Works Posted By Adrick on February 4, 2008 As Paul promised here is my own, personal count-down of my personal favorite Expanded Universe works! 10 Galactic Battlegrounds Video games are an important part of the EU, but for the most part, they’re inaccessible to me. I don’t have the time, the patience, the money, or the hardware it takes to run the greatest Star Wars games. Galactic Battlegrounds is different, though. I can easily handle the strategic challenges thrown my way in the campaigns, and I love competing with my brother in multiplayer mode—even if he always wins. The storyline is good, and generally fits into the larger EU well. (This is something the Empire at War folks could have learned from.) Best part of the game? Simon the Killer Ewok. 9 Cloak of Deception Perhaps James Luceno’s best Star Wars novel, Cloak of Deception is definitely an EU masterpiece. It integrates established EU locations and characters into a political thriller that showcases Palpatine’s manipulations and provides the background for The Phantom Menace. And just when you think you’ve got everything figured out, Luceno adds a shocking surprise ending! 8 The New Essential Guides The old Essential Guides were great for their times, and sill have lots of useful information…but the new Guides are absolutely spectacular! The sheer amount of sources grows impressively with each book, both as new stories are released and older ones gain credibility. Although there have been a few lackluster volumes, most provide excellent art with brand new information and plenty of continuity fixes to keep the sometimes disparate sources in line with one another. 7 Evil Never Dies And uh, speaking of continuity fixes…Abel G. Peñ is a master of continuity, who routinely balances retcons with storytelling and new information. He hasn’t written any novels, but recently his works have become very influential in setting up characters for future books. Peñ’s Sith guide is his masterpiece, filling in the gaps in Sith history, describing Sith Lords only barely mentioned before, and even providing a reasonable explanation for the Sith’s continued existence. 6 X-Wing: Wraith Squadron Wildly different in tone than anything that came before, Aaron Allston’s Wraith Squadron books balance over-the-top humor—the stuffed Ewok gag is legendary—with a sense of danger that was new for Star Wars novels. Any of his characters could be killed off, and several of my favorites were. Allston also tied his books directly into the older Courtship of Princess Leia, and even explained a major inconsistency with that novel to boot. My favorite part? While posing as an Imperial crew, undercover Wraith Squadron devises a wacky-but-effective solution to avoid meeting another Imperial crew face-to-face that you have to read to believe. 5 Tales Of/From... Turning background extras into main characters is a staple of the EU, and it’s never been done better than in the Tales collections. A whole slew of talented authors—some of whom were not the usual stock Star Wars writers—contributed to these three books, one for each of the movies. Two of the best Boba Fett stories ever written can be found here, along with some highly entertaining adventures of the cantina band. The quality and variety of stories and authors in these stories can’t be found anywhere else. 4 Star Tours Star Tours combines two of my favorite things: Star Wars and Walt Disney World. You wouldn’t expect to find a Star Wars ride here, but it definitely work. Disney's animatronics bring the droids of Star Wars to life--where else can you see a C-3PO that really is a robot? Walking into the queue area of Star Tours is like walking into a Star Wars movie, and while the simulator isn’t exactly intense, the shaking and soaring feel just like what you see onscreen. Amazing! 3 The Thrawn Trilogy What can I say here that others haven’t? Even though it took me three years to finish, the Thrawn Trilogy was one of the first EU series I read. It still stands as my favorite novel trilogy. 2 The Jude Watson-verse Ah, but before I started reading the rest of the Expanded Universe, I had already discovered Watson’s Jedi Apprenticeseries. In the post-ROTS era it’s hard not to look back on a time when Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan were solving mysteries and undertaking “aggressive negotiations” without a definite sense of nostalgia. Although Apprentice ended after eighteen books (and two special editions) it really continued on in Watson’s two follow-up series, Jedi Quest and Last of the Jedi (the latter of which is still ongoing.) Add to that her classic Legacy of the Jedi, Secrets of the Jedi, and her pre-Apprentice works (the Journals and Science Adventures) and you have one of the largest and most impressive EU contributions by a single author. 1 Classic Star Wars Although there are many works set between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, Archie Goodwin and Al Williamson’s excellent newspaper comic stories have long been considered the definitive bridge between the two. Goodwin had previously written stories for Marvel’s Star Wars comic line, but here he had the advantage of working with material from the newly-released Empire. Thus, we not only have typical high space adventure stories involving flying snakes and a half-dressed pirate queen, we also see the backstories for many events in Empire: the bounty hunter of Ord Mantell, the discovery of Hoth, the evacuation of Yavin, and the launch of the Executor. Years after the series had concluded, Dark Horse teamed with Al Williamson to colorize the daily strips and add new artwork, turning the hard-to-find newspaper strips into full-blown comics. Great art, terrific writing--the EU hasn’t been this much fun since. Those are my favorites so far…and I look forward to finding more! email this story discuss in forums Select Date 2009, July 2009, June 2009, May 2009, April 2009, March 2009, February 2009, January 2008, December 2008, November 2008, October 2008, September 2008, August 2008, July 2008, June 2008, May 2008, April 2008, March 2008, February 2008, January 2007, December 2007, November 2007, October 2007, September 2007, August 2007, July 2007, June 2007, May 2007, April 2007, March 2007, February 2007, January 2006, December 2006, November 2006, October 2006, September 2006, August 2006, July 2006, June 2006, May 2006, April 2006, March 2006, February 2006, January 2005, December 2005, November 2005, October 2005, September 2005, August 2005, July 2005, June 2005, May 2005, April 2005, March 2005, February 2005, January 2004, December 2004, November 2004, October 2004, September 2004, August 2004, July 2004, June 2004, May 2004, April 2004, March 2004, February 2004, January 2003, December 2003, November 2003, October 2003, September 2003, August 2003, July 2003, June 2003, May 2003, April 2003, March 2003, February 2003, January 2002, December 2002, November 2002, October 2002, September 2002, August 2002, July 2002, June 2002, May 2002, April 2002, March 2002, February 2002, January 2001, December 2001, November 2001, October 2001, September 2001, August 2001, July 2001, June 2001, May 2001, April 2001, March 2001, February 2001, January 2000, December 2000, November 2000, October 2000, September 2000, August 2000, July 2000, June 2000, May 2000, April 2000, March 2000, February 2000, January 1999, December 1999, November 1999, October 1999, September 1999, August 1999, July 1999, June 1999, May 1999, April 1999, March 1999, February 1999, January 1998, December 1998, November 1998, October 1998, July 1998, June The Dark Nest Strikes Back! Posted By Paul on July 5, 2009: Updated! Life imitates Star Wars... Star Wars... In Czech! Posted By Paul on July 5, 2009: New book of translated stories... Karen Miller's TCW Gambit: Stealth Update Posted By Mike on July 5, 2009: Moving along nicely! "Decide Your Destiny" In Shops AND Online! Posted By Paul on July 5, 2009: Adventure books and interactive website... Star Wars: Omen Is A Best-Seller!! Posted By Paul on July 5, 2009: Kudos to Christie Golden... Kemp Offers Up A Brief Crosscurrent Update Posted By Mike on July 1, 2009: "Light sabers, baby. Light. Sabers." Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff Discusses Hardware Posted By Mike on July 1, 2009: And Dash Rendar's ship, the Outrider Making Of SW: Episode V Release Moved Up Posted By Mike on June 30, 2009: Indiana Jones TPB moved up as well Bohnhoff Considers Sci-Fi Story Weaving Posted By Mike on June 27, 2009: Does mode of transportation define a genre? Star Wars Novel Omen Reviewed! Posted By Paul on June 27, 2009: The low-down on the latest story... FOTJ: Omen Is Out & Christie Golden's Excited Posted By Mike on June 23, 2009: As her first Star Wars novel gets published Has Blood Oath Been Postponed Again? Posted By Mike on June 23, 2009: Updated! Now looking like April New Star Wars: Invasion Teaser! Posted By Paul on June 23, 2009: Very small rocks... New Novel Name News: Allies! Posted By Paul on June 23, 2009: Title revealed for fifth Fate of the Jedi book... Drew Karpyshyn Q&A With EUC Posted By Mike on June 20, 2009: Talking Darth Bane of course! Toddler Star Wars Books On The Way Posted By Mike on June 20, 2009: Next up...infants! A View Inside The Complete Vader Posted By Mike on June 20, 2009: Coming to bookshelves in October! Bohnhoff Discusses Droids In Sci-Fi Posted By Mike on June 18, 2009: And how she should write for Dash's droid? Cover Revealed For Rebel Force: Trapped Posted By Mike on June 17, 2009: Along with a blurb for the 5th in the series Abel G. Peña 2.0! Posted By Paul on June 16, 2009: Author's website gets a reboot... Jedi Journal Books: Backlash Covered! Posted By Jay on June 15, 2009: Fate of the Jedi book four. George Lucas's Blockbusting Posted By Mike on June 14, 2009: New book on the way in January of 2010 Steve Sansweet's SW: 1,000 Collectibles Posted By Justin on June 13, 2009: Updated! Another must-have on the horizon New Description For Fate of the Jedi: Abyss Posted By Mike on June 13, 2009: Spoilerific tidbits for the 3rd FOTJ novel How Are SW Novels Like Roller Coasters? Posted By Mike on June 10, 2009: Bohnhoff's "A Padawan's Journal" explains Fate Of The Jedi "Imprint" Short Story Posted By Mike on June 10, 2009: One of the goodies in the new SW fan club kit Jedi Journals: Darth Vader Paperback Posted By Jay on June 9, 2009: In stores now! TCW Decide Your Destiny Books Posted By Mike on June 9, 2009: And some other youngling books on the way Size Matters Not Posted By Dustin on June 6, 2009: New ad in Star Wars Insider Title News For TCW Novel #4 Posted By Mike on June 6, 2009: Updated! Gambit: Stealth confirmed! TCW Books: Breakout Squad & Holocron Heist Posted By Mike on June 6, 2009: Highlighted at SW.com and coming this fall Star Wars Bibliographer Lita Sheldon Posted By Justin on June 6, 2009: Interviewed by Guy Harrison Invasion Preview #2!! Posted By Paul on June 5, 2009: New comic chapter now online... The Clone Wars Official S1 Episode Guide Posted By Justin on June 4, 2009: From Grosset & Dunlap Kemp Talks A Little Crosscurrent At Tor.com Posted By Mike on June 4, 2009: And Jaden Korr in particular Art Of TCW & Atlas Head To The UK! Posted By Mike on June 4, 2009: Courtesy of Titan Books Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff Talks Sidekicks Posted By Mike on June 3, 2009: At the Holostar author's blog Adrick's New Hyperspace Fiction! Posted By Mike on June 2, 2009: "Death in the Slave Pits of Lorrd" Bohnhoff Adds 2 New Blog Entries Posted By Mike on May 30, 2009: Plotting the SW novel and first impressions UPDATE: Jedi Journal Books: Precipice Available Posted By Jay on May 28, 2009: Available today! Random Star Wars Books Updates Posted By Mike on May 27, 2009: New covers, descriptions and more! Karen Miller Teases TCW Novel #4 Posted By Mike on May 26, 2009: And just loves writing in the SW universe More TCW: No Prisoners Details Online Posted By Mike on May 23, 2009: The prologue and a bit from chapter one Cover Revealed For SW: The Complete Vader Posted By Mike on May 23, 2009: Updated! And sample page now online! Jedi Journal Books: Now On Sale! Posted By Jay on May 21, 2009: Clones and more clones! 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